Lawn perforator



March l2, 1940. y J. T. RAMsDEN Erm. 2,193,779

LAWN PERFORATOR Filed Dec. 7, 1957 f7 sheets-sheet 1 (il f: n

//ace @M3 l 3.5 kwifrra/PA/f-K March 12, 1940. J, 1'. RAMSDEN l-:r AL 2,193,779

v LAWN PERFoRAToR Filed Dec. 7, 1957 7 Sheets-Sheet 2 huwuz), @SMM March 12, 1940. J. T. RAMsDEN Er AL 2,193,779

LAWN PEnFoRAToR Filed Dec. 7, 1937 7 sheets-sheet s March 12,'1940. J. T. RAMsDl-:N Er AL 2,193,779

LAWN PERFORATOR Filed Dec. 7, 1937 7 Sheets-Sheet 4 March l2, 1940. .1. T. RAMsDEN x-:r AL

LAWN PERFORATOR Filed Dec. 7, 1957 7 Sheets-Sheet 5 March l2, 1940. .1. T. RAMSDEN x-:T AL

LAWN PERFORATOR Filed Dec. 7, 1937 7 Sheets-Sheet 6 March 12, 1940. J. T. RAMSDEN Er AL.

LAWN PERFORATOR Filed Dec. 7, 1957 7 sneet's-sheet 7 raiesiediiamiz, 1940 l' I 2,193j7'29 UNITED STATES f PATENT oFEicE LAWN riiitiioiin'roit John T. Ramsden and Frank Rich Wallace, Philadelphia, Pa., assignors to The Tabor- Manufacturing Company,v Philadelphia, Pa., a corpora.- tion of Pennsylvania Application December 7, 1937, Serial No. 178,472

p claims. (o1. :rz-52) In the care of lawns, golf courses, putting the machine and then in the opposite direction. greens and play and other fields', it is desirable I If this were permitted to occur the pin would not in order to improve and keep the grass in good enter and leave the ground in vertical direction condition to introduce humus, fertilizers and and would not makeclean holes but would leave 5 moisture at and below the roots of the grass or the surface ltorn up and irregular. 5

sod. This requires that holes relatively near toj Generally stated the invention comprisesr gether be made in the ground by means of which means for moving the pivot of the pin in the the necessary substances may be introduced .direction of forward travel of the machine to below the roots of the lgrass or sod. an `extent substantially equal to the forward Heretofore it has been proposed to make these travel of the machine so that the pin after it 10 hol-es by means vof a roller provided with radial touches the ground remains substantially vertical pins but the result was unsatisfactory because throughout the stroke which it is caused to make the pins tore up the sod or turf. The customary by reason of its pivotal connection with a roway to makes holes in the lawn or turf was to tating part. The linvention also comprises means l5 use a block provided with pinsv and having a `for turning the rotating elementto which the 15 handle. .The operator stood on the board or pins are pivoted faster than the carrying kroller block and wiggled it by means of the handle or rolls of the machine and in the saine direcso that the pins made straight holes of proper tion.

conformation thru the turf or grass.'l'l1is oper- The invention also comprises the improveation was necessarily slow and therefore exments to be presently described and finally 20 pensive in regard to both time and labor. claimed.

The principal object of the present invention In the following descriptionreference will be is to provide a machine which will rapidly and made to the accompanying drawings forming expeditiously make vertically directed straight part hereof andA in which,

g5 holes in the lawn or other ground being treated Figure 1 is a diagrammatic or schematic vview 25 and which therefore does not tear up the grass or illustrating the path traveled by the pivotal sod. Another object of the invention is to propointsof pinslocated on a revolving disk driven vide such a machine that will not be unduly faster than the ground roller which carries the heavy and that een be Sed even `on putting machine and showing that these pivot points as greens Where the grass iS quite Sheri, because they approach and leave the ground describe 30 it places n0 more Weight 0r load on the ground a, loop so narrow that it may be regarded as a per unit of area than is placed by the weight Straight une, y of an ordinary man or person Walking 0nthe Figfzis a similar view showing the path deground- Another ObJ'eCt 0f .the mventlon 1S to scribed by the pivot point of a pin as it enters provide for pushing the pins mto the ground and and leaves the ground on a larger scale than in for withdrawing them from the ground with an Fig 1 i endwise vertical movement whilstthe machine is Fig 3 is a, Side View of a machine embodying n continually progressing frwarq Ove? the groupd' yfeatures of the invention with the direction of Another. O bJect of @he Invent-'lon 1s to provlde action of certain parts indicated by straight lines,

40 .OI detammg the puts above the ground when and with certain parts omitted for the sake of 40 it is necessary or desirable to turn the machine deafness i around.

Other objects of the invention will appear from tr'gt 'namlllr l shl'duf the following description at the end of which action and clear of the ground.

a the invention will be claimed. l 5 t 1 n V.eW of th h.

- It may be remarked that the machine travels Flg' 1s a Igp pr p a .th im@ 156g or progresses along the ground and is carried by Wn'Qh partsbro en away 1an W1 Cer am 'pa suitable wheels, or rollers, running on the Omlted fol the sake of ceamess' ground and considering one pin pivotally con- H-aga gomgfl ts'nrgeed ev'irg l r p nected with a rotating` element the rotation of pants omitted and other parts djagrammatp 5o the latter will push the pin into the ground and withdraw it, but when the pin contacts with cally indicated. It is generally e See'len 0n JGhe the ground the motion of `translation of the lines of 7.v r r machine tends to put the pin into inclined posiliig. 7. 1s an end view of Flg. Wlth parts tion, at first in the direction of movement of omitted for the sake .of clearness. '1 55 Fig. 8 is a view drawn to an enlarged scale and illustrating the holder for the pins.

Fig. 9 is a top or plan View of Fig. 8 with parts omitted.

Fig. l is a view similar to Fig. 8 but with the pins thrown out of action as by an obstruction at the ground.

Fig. 11 is a partial side view of means by which the pin carrier is driven from the roller, and

l2 is a transverse central section of Fig. l1.

In the drawings and referring to Fig. 5, I. and 2 indicate ground rollers or Wheels which carry the machine and enable it to progress over the ground. These parts I and 2 are alike and therefore a description of one of them will suce. These parts I and 2 are mounted on an axle or shaft 3 as shown by means of spokes l radiating from a ring like hub structure 5 mounted on the shaft 3. A draft handle 4S is likewise connected to axle or shaft 3. The axle or shaft 3 also carries a frame 6 equipped with a caster wheel l. 8 is a ratchet wheel freely r'evoluble on the shaft 3 and sometimes it is driven by means of pawls 9 carried by the hub structure and it operates thru speed gearing lll, Il, I2 and i3 to drive a pin carrier I4. The pin carrier lil is driven or rotated when the pawls are in action. The gears I!) and I3 revolve about the axle 3 end the gears II and I2 are revoluble about centers carried by the frame 6. The pin carrier Ill comprises, as shown, five disks I5. On these disks are pivotally mounted pin stock units. A, Fig. '7. Referring to Figs. 8 to 10, the pin stocks comprise a rectangular frame Il, Fig. 9, pivoted by a pivot or pin I8 between the disks I5. In these frames il are arranged slides I9 provided with oblong openings which straddle the pivots i8. The slides I 9 have attached to them the pins 2U. Springs 2| interposed between the slides and the frame II bias the pins El) downward toward the ground. To hold the pins in normal position as shown in Fig. 8 and yet to permit them to occupy the position shown in l0, there is provided a looking or escapement arm 22 pivoted to the frame l1 at 23 and equipped with an offset end 24 carrying a roller 25. A spring EES normally positions the arm 22 as shown in Fig. 8 with the roller 25 on top of the slide i9, but quite near its edge as shown in Fig. 8 so that if the pin 20 strikes an obstruction on the ground the roller 25 clears the top of the slide shown in Fig. 10. It may be remarked that the arm 22 is provided with a stop 2l' which serves to properly position the roller 25 in respect to the top of the slide. On the disks I5 are stops 28 and the frames I'I have at one side thereof cheeks 2S which cooperate with these stops for the purpose of positioningr 'le plus 25 vertically as they strike the ground. The other side of the frame IT is provided with a link shown in Figs. 8 and l0 but partially omitted from Fig. 9. This link El!! is curved and at its free end is attached a spring 3|; the other end of the spring SI is connected to a disk I5 as indicated at 22 in Figs. 6 and 7. It may be remarked that the purpose of this is to cause the spring Si to turn the cheek against the stop 23 when the line of draft of the spring 2| iS above the center of the pivot I8, and when the line of draft is below the center of the pivot I8 the stock is drawn in the opposite direction by the influence of the spring 3|. The link 30 is provided ivith a flat I6 (shown in Fig. l0) which contacts with the top of the frame I'I, as shown particularly at the right in Fig. 6, and this limits the line oi draft of the spring 3| when the line of draft is below the center of pilot I8. The purpose of this will be hereinafter described.

Referring to Figs. ll and l2, the pawls 9 which are carried by the hub 5 of the roller I are put into and out of operation by a turnable member 32a pivotally mounted on hub structure and equipped with fingers that operate on the tails of the pawls. The member 32a is turned to thro7 the pawls into and out of action by a spring pressed hand piece 34 mounted for reciprocating movement in hub structure 5 and having an eccentric pin 35, Fig. 12, which operates in a notch in the member 32a. The hand piece 34 is equipped with a lip 3i? which can be positioned on one side or the other of a rib 31 so as to prevent accidental turning of the hand piece 315, and so as to permit it to be pulled out and turned to place with the lip on one side or the other of the rib and thus to position the pawl in operative and inoperative positions. In order that the pawls may not chatter, their tails are divided as shown at 38 and 39 in Fig. 12

and blocks of wood or the like 40 are interposed e between these divisions and the ratchet wheel l?. spring lil serves to keep these blocks of wood up against the ratchet wheel because it presses the parts 38 and 39 toward each other. It may be remarked that 42, Fig. 1l, are stops that limit the movement of the tails of the pawls. t3 is a hood or collector in the form of a part of a sector of a circle, Figs. 3 and 5, and it is turnable about eccentrics 44 carried from the sides cf the frame Fig. 5, next to the outside disks of the pin carrier. Normally it is held in the position shown in Fig. 3 by a hook d5, Fig. 3, but when the machine is to be turned around the hood occupies the position shown in Fig. 4, and in that position it keeps the pins 2li from entering and from contact with the ground.

The inode of operation of the described machine may be explained as follows in connection with Fig. 3. Referring to the pin indicated at o, it is in contact with the ground and it is in substantially vertical position because the line of draft b of its spring 3i is such that it is held up at c against its stop 28. The machine is moving toward the left and the roller E and pin carrier I4 are turning counter-clockwise. The pin carrier is turning at a higher speed. of revolution than the roller I. The result of this is as follows: when the pin CL strikes the ground its pivot I8 tends to move toward the left as the machine as a whole travels in that direction, but the revolution of the pin carrier counter-clockwise and at a higher speed than the revolution of the roller moves the pivot toward the right so that the pin remains vertical as it enters and leaves the ground as will be readily understood by reference to 3. Since the pin is held by the ground and the pin carrier which carries the stop E8 moves in a circle the stop 28 moves away from the cheek 29, and thus the line of draft b of the spring 3| is changed until nnally the line of draft passes below the pivot point IB and thus the spring 3| becomes ineffective to turn the cheek towards the stop, but becomes effective to turn the pins in the opposite direction and into the position shown at the right in Figs. 3 and 5, and this position they occupy during the rotation oi the pin carrier until lthey pass over the center line at the top when they fall into the position indicated at lawn or other ground whichcomprises the comthe left which brings the line of draft of the springs 3l into position to turn the pins against their stops.

Referring to Fig. 1, the path of the successive pivot points I8 of the pins is indicated at d and the form of this path is due to the travel of the machine toward the left and to the turning motion of the pin carrier ld at a greater speed of revolution than the roller l. This path of travel includes anarrow loop e shown on a larger scale in Fig. 2 and this narrow loop e is substantially equivalent to a straight vertical line and so it is that the pins enter and leave the ground in a vertical line, in that way the ground is not torn up andthe holes are straight and are of substantially Acircular cross vsection throughout their length.

The machine described is intended to be propelled by hand but it is -quite evident that it can be propelled by any traction device, or it may be driven from a suitable ,source of power carried upon it. The point is that the pin carrier shall be run at a faster speed of-revolution than the carrying wheel or roller l. When it is desired to put the pins out of Vaction to turn the machine, or for any other purpose, the hand-piece 34 is reversed.

which makes the pawls 9 ineffective for turning the pin carrier and the hood 43 is turned into the position shown in Figa and secured in that position by the hook 5. In that position all the pins 2U are heldclear of the ground and at rest so that the machine may be turned in any direction or moved about Without functioning.

It may be remarked that there are a series of pins 2 0 between the disks I5 and that the pins in the respective series are staggered.- The purpose of this is to enable the pins to cleareach other. and in Fig. 6 the pins that lie in one plane are markedF, and the pins which lie in the plane parallel to but back of the lrst mentioned plane are markedvB.

It will be obvious to those skilled in the art to which the invention relates that modincations may be made in details of construction and arrangement and in matters of mereform without departing from the spirit` of the invention which is not limited in respect to such matters, or otherwise than the prior art and the appended claims may require.

We claim:

1. A machine for making straight holes in a bination of carrying wheels on which the machine is mounted for motion of translation, pins pivotally carried by the machineand adapted to enter and to leave the ground, means .for reciprocating the pins endwise, mechanism for moving the pivots of the pins opposite to thedirection of travel oi the machine for substantially the distance of travel of the machine during the time required for the pins to enter and to leave the ground, and means forv yieldingly holding said pins in substantially vertical position during the time required for the pins'to enter and to leave the ground, whereby the pins punch. substantially straight holes the ground.

2. In a machine of the type recited, a rotating pin carrier, pins, pin stocks pivotedto the pin carrier, meansfor positioning the pin stocks in respect to the` carrier to present the pins normal to the surface of the ground, slides movable in the stocks and to which the pins are connected, springs pressing said slides to pin driving position, andan escapement mechanism normally. lholding the slides radially in pin driving posif the rotation of the carrier back to their original positions. f

4. In a machine of the type recited the combination of a rotatable pin carrier, pins pivoted thereto,-means for putting the pins into driving position, and a hood mounted eccentricall'y in respect'to the axis of the pin carrier and adapted in one position to support the pins clear of said means and of the ground when the carrier is out of action to facilitate movement of the machine with the pins clear of the ground. Y

5. The combination substantially as described in claim 3, in which the pins are carried in pvotally mounted pin stocks and in which curved links connect the endsl of the springs to the stocks and by abutting on the stocks limit the change of direction of the line of draft of the springs in respect to the pivots of the stocks. p l

JOI-1N T. RAMSDEN. FRANK RICH WALLACE. 

